June 15, 2021 | GroceryGeniuses Blog

Lowes Foods joins forces with Bell and Howell to pilot grocery pickup lockers at workplaces

GroceryGeniuses June 15, 2021

Lowes Foods, a grocer from North Carolina, has collaborated with Bell and Howell’s QuickCollect Solution unit to deliver groceries at workplaces. The grocery orders will be delivered in temperature-controlled pickup lockers to maintain quality and freshness. Lowes Foods observed a rise in demand for grocery pickup due to the locker service offered to offices and campus locations. Consumers will be notified via text with a unique code to unlock and retrieve when the order is ready for pickup.

The Abu Dhabi Sovereign Fund to invest $500 million in Flipkart, an Indian grocer

GroceryGeniuses June 15, 2021

As per Bloomberg’s report, The Abu Dhabi Sovereign Fund, a state investment firm, might invest in the Indian e-grocer Flipkart. Flipkart is in talks with ADQ and the latter is planning to inject funds worth $500M. Flipkart, owned by Walmart, would value about $30 to $40 Billion if this deal with ADQ is sealed. The Indian grocer is looking to attract investors from Singapore and Canada to seek funds worth $3 Billion and with this deal, the company might raise about $3.75B.

Google to inaugurate its first-ever physical store this week

GroceryGeniuses June 15, 2021

Google is all set to open the door of its first-ever retail store to customers this Thursday, June 17 in New York. The store will have a complete range of Google’s hardware and software displayed for customers to try out and purchase. Customers can toggle between different features of the products and technical support will be provided at the store. Google will also conduct How-To workshops throughout the year for better usage and maintenance. The tech giant has expanded its commerce ecosystem and partnered with various online sellers to offer online delivery.

Microsoft makes a comeback to physical retail stores after a year

GroceryGeniuses June 15, 2021

Microsoft is returning to physical stores next month after closing them during the pandemic. The tech giant will sell its products at its Experience Centres in London, New York, and Sydney. Customers would be able to buy Xbox-related products in addition to Surface devices and Microsoft 365 subscriptions. Xbox Series X / S consoles would be in stock later once the store is ready to meet consumer demand. Online ordering or pick up options won’t be available as of now.

The pandemic caused consumer appetite for snacks to increase

GroceryGeniuses June 15, 2021

The pandemic altered and affected almost every aspect of human life. Increased snacking is certainly one of them. According to the latest survey issued by Blue Chip, 44% of consumers have increased snacking during the pandemic and 6% said they curbed snacking. Store-bought snacks were high in demand. 68% of consumers snack while watching TV. Snackers grabbed salty snacks (56%) more than sweet treats (37%) while relaxing or watching movies. Nuts (20%), crackers (17%) and popcorn (17%) are highly munched on snacks as per this survey.

Amazon Fresh to roll out its first Just Walkout checkout-free superstore

GroceryGeniuses June 15, 2021

Amazon Fresh is all set to roll out Just Walk-out technology in a new full-size supermarket this month to make it totally checkout-free. The latest 25,000-square-foot store at The Marketplace in Washington will be equipped with traditional checkout lanes. Customers can pay with cash, credit card, or use Amazon One palm scanning device for contactless payment. Amazon is successfully marrying the technology-driven and computer-visioned strategy to conventional retailing.

Boxed signs a deal with SPAC to go public, now values at $900M

GroceryGeniuses June 15, 2021

Boxed, a digital wholesale firm offering cereals, toilet papers etc, has signed a deal with Seven Oaks Acquisition Corp. (SPAC). Because of this deal, Boxed now values about $900M and received $334 million in net cash and will go public in the U.S. under the existing name. Boxed uses a digital transaction SaaS technology developed by Aeon, a tech firm. The online wholesale firm offers products from personal care, health and household categories.

Meijer receives approval for a new grocery store layout

GroceryGeniuses June 15, 2021

Meijer has received approval from the local township planning commission to build a new format store in Orion Township, Michigan. The grocer is planning to launch a 90,000-feet-square store having a food section primarily. Unlike other Meijer stores following the one-stop shopping retail strategy, this store won’t have all the categories that Meijer usually offers. Meijer also plans to make it less than half of the size of its standard stores. As per its spokesperson, this idea is still in its early stages.